One Direction’s Liam Payne goes solo, signs with Capitol UK

Liam Payne is the latest One Direction member to go solo, signing with Capitol Records UK and entering the studio to work on his debut.

“One Direction will always be my home and family,” Payne tweeted Thursday afternoon. “But I’m very excited to see what this chapter brings.”

Payne said part of his reason for picking Capitol was its history, which includes The Beatles. “They have an amazing history of artists,” Payne tweeted. “I hope I can follow in their footsteps.”

Payne follows Zayn Malik, who topped both the album and singles charts earlier this year with his “Mind of Mine” album, in signing a solo record deal from the multiplatinum group, which is currently on hiatus. Harry Styles is working on his acting first, with a role in Christopher Nolan’s upcoming war film “Dunkirk.” Louis Tomlinson has been focusing on his newborn son Freddie, as well as serving as guest judge on “America’s Got Talent” this week.